While there were some great moves made by the Chicago Bears during the 2026 offseason, there were also some questionable decisions made that should have fans raising their hands and waiting for general manager Ryan Poles to call on them.
There have been a lot of conversations about the edge rusher position and how nothing was done about it. Poles has a lot of hope that guys like Austin Booker and Dayo Odeyingbo can help out with that.
That's not the position that should be worrying Bears fans the most. There's another one that is getting lost in the shuffle that really shouldn't be.
Bears' cornerback position isn't as strong as fans might think
Last season, the Bears went through a rotation of defensive backs with guys like Jaylon Johnson and Kyler Gordon injured, leaving Nahshon Wright and Tyrique Stevenson to be the starters for about half the season. The Bears' secondary finished 22nd in the NFL in pass defense, allowing 227.2 yards per game.
In the offseason, the Bears' key starters in the secondary, like Wright, C.J. Gardner-Johnson, Kevin Byard, and Jaquan Brisker, walked in free agency. They were able to at least get Coby Bryant and rookie first-round pick Dillon Thieneman to fill in at the safety positions.
The real concern comes with the lack of focus at the cornerback position. Chicago did draft rookie Malik Muhammad in the fourth round, but that's not enough to give fans the confidence they need at the position.
Stevenson had a phenomenal two-game run at the beginning of last year, but fell apart quickly afterward and was reduced to zero snaps on defense by the end of the year. Instead, he was replaced by Pro Bowler Wright, who led the NFL last year in turnovers created with 10.
The interesting part is that the Bears let Wright sign a one-year, roughly $5 million deal with the New York Jets and decided to stick with Stevenson. It was a bit of a head-scratcher for Bears fans, as while Wright wasn't perfect in coverage, he could at least create turnovers, whereas Stevenson was inconsistent throughout his career.
Now, the Bears are stuck trying to pick between Stevenson and Muhammad at CB2, but Muhammad might not even end up playing there. That's because Gordon is still dealing with a soft-tissue injury and missed all of OTAs, with no clear timeline on when he could return. The slot corner position is also a big question mark as it could either be Muhammad, Josh Blackwell, or even Cam Lewis.
Read more: 3 winners (and 2 losers) from Bears' franchise-altering offseason
Yes, the lack of a pass rush is a problem, and Jaylon Johnson had a great minicamp with one day capturing two interceptions, but the cornerback position appears to still be kind of a problem for the Bears. If the team does not handle this situation correctly, it could be what prevents the Bears from making an anticipated Super Bowl run in 2026.
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